Hooley on the Normandy
by Old Gamer
Summary: After Shepard and crew had recovered from injuries received at the conclusion of the Reaper War, the Council sent them on a 1-year public relations 'Victory Tour'. Being Irish and desperate for a change of pace, Shepard decides to secretly acquire the necessary supplies to throw a surprise hooley (party) for the entire crew on St Patrick's Day; March 17, 2188. › ONE SHOT ‹
1. Part 1

_**Happy Saint Patrick's Day!**_

This is a **Desert Sunrise** and **Old Gamer** co-authored orphan, in the _**Chronicles of Samantha Shepard universe**_... which will eventually fall into 'The Promise of After.' We are including most of the characters... can't give you any hints as to who Desert Sunrise plans to kill off, now, can we?

_**A/N**: It may seem redundant for each of us to publish the same story; as authors, we each have a different group of followers, so thought this would be a good way to broaden our fan base._

AI - Artificial Intelligence

_Hooley - _Party or celebration (Gaelic)

* * *

**PART 1**

**SSV Normandy, Milky Way Galaxy (at large)**

Exhausted, Shepard threw herself down on the couch in frustration. She was so tired of hopping colony to colony; every single stop was the same... a big fanfare welcome for the savior of the galaxy and the miracle-working Normandy crew. So many systems, so many planets... and so much destruction. Sure, folks were rebuilding and it was great to see, but it wasn't the parades, the speeches, the trailing camera crews or the dinners that bothered her all that much... it was the memorial observances. They hadn't hit a single colony yet that hadn't asked her to speak at some massive graveyard or in front of some commemorative monument they had erected. She felt horribly guilty for not wanting to speak at the ceremonies... people were still looking for closure, but Shepard was tired of speaking of the deceased.

The war was over. They had won, yet the dead still haunted her. The first night after each stop was normally the worst. Just that morning, she had tossed both herself and Liara out of bed at some wee hour with her frantic thrashing in her unsuccessful attempts to escape that damned dark, ash-filled forest. It was the worst episode yet and Liara had scrambled off the floor, fearing Shepard was going to accidentally injure herself and, even with the link, still almost had to do a forced-meld to break the hold the nightmare had on her. When she finally penetrated Shepard's thoughts, Samantha had wept in her arms like a lost child and Liara felt helpless in her apparent inability to give Shepard the comfort she required. Her mere presence used to be enough to keep the nightmare at bay, but no longer. With the number of dead being driven home so frequently and seeing much of the galaxy laid to waste, even the mightiest of barriers eventually fell.

With all the stop and go, the trip thus far had been grueling and there was _still_ a lot of time remaining of the horrible '_Victory Tour_.' Liara had sent a note to Tevos, asking her to speak to the Council about a short break, but it wasn't looking promising. Seeing Shepard like this was breaking Liara's heart and one way or another, she was determined to find a solution. When Samantha finally settled down enough to speak, she didn't say much; she didn't need to. Liara knew of the nightmares and had seen the visions Shepard had shared, but this particular morning had been exceedingly difficult, and when she finally spoke, Samantha only said one thing to Liara before her eyes closed again in fatigue. "I see their faces. I hear their voices. They whisper to me in the darkness of my dreams."

Later that morning, Liara had received an initial response from Tevos; so far her petitions to the Council on Shepard's behalf had been met with deaf ears. Tevos was alone in the matter... a new Human councilor had yet to be appointed, so no Human advocate existed. Quentius was a typical Turian and demanded personal sacrifice above all else; for a Turian, duty always came first. The Salarians, of course, viewed seven months time as _forever_ and they had long since mourned their dead and moved on. They found it difficult to understand why it should even be a problem any longer, so there was little sympathy from Valern... not to mention that Shepard was not a favorite of the Dalatrasses, so even if Valern had understood, the Dalatrasses wanted to make Shepard continue the tour anyway, as punishment for their loss of face over the Genophage cure. Tevos was fighting a losing battle and the tour would continue for the foreseeable future.

With the mostly Human crew, Christmas and New Years had been a nice change of pace but it was still hard to celebrate a holiday with so many recently dead. The thoughts of family that should have brought joy often ushered in sadness instead. Shepard and Liara, at least, had no such regrets... not from the Reaper War anyway. Both Aethyta and Hannah had come through relatively unscathed, so the Normandy duo had much to be thankful for on that account.

Shepard knew that even though they wouldn't be on Thessia, Liara and Riana would want to celebrate Janiris, this year especially. Once again, they could realistically look forward in time and ask for blessings on a future that would actually exist. The only problem was the beginning of May was still four months away and Shepard knew she wouldn't last that long without some diversion or a major change in the events she took part in at each landfall. Since she had little control over the latter, she focused on the former... something which could provide distraction for her and the crew from the lingering reminders of the war. Staying on the theme of holidays, she stepped through the months before them. After New Years, January and February both held nothing of note that could be cause for a ship-wide celebration. Her eyes suddenly lit with excitement and she eagerly sat up on the couch as a prospective solution came to mind. The month of March brought St Patty's day, and that _definitely_ had potential.

The more Shepard thought about it, the more she realized she couldn't have asked for a more applicable holiday. While she held the English name of her father, all it took was one look at her hair and complexion to know she was her mother's daughter... and Hannah hailed from Wicklow; full-blooded Irish, through and through. As a plan started to come together in her mind, for the first time since their New Year's Eve celebration and falling asleep contentedly in Liara's arms, Captain Samantha Shepard started to honestly smile.

* * *

It was a travel day so Shepard had a break from the torments of making landfall and, having been thinking about the party much of the day, was actually in a fairly good mood when dinner time came around. Coordinating supply and technology deliveries required for galactic recovery, Liara had been extremely busy and hadn't seen the commander since their particularly difficult start to the day. She was concerned about how Shepard was doing... especially since Tevos was getting nowhere with her requests and Liara had yet to come up with a solution to the dilemma. Because of that, Liara was more than pleasantly surprised to see a _smiling_ Shepard walk into the office to see if she was ready to take a dinner break. Shepard would tell her nothing... she simply wanted to grab their dinner and retire to the loft to eat, where they could discuss something in private. Liara was perfectly happy to agree, very curious as to what could possibly have caused Shepard's radical change in demeanor, wondering if perhaps Hackett had interceded on Shepard's behalf.

As it turned out, Hackett had absolutely nothing to do with Shepard's improvement and Liara's curiosity was only partially assuaged with Shepard's eager explanation of her party plan. It raised questions which Liara's inquisitive nature could not let go unanswered, the most obvious of which she asked first. "What exactly is this holiday in celebration of?"

Liara's heart almost burst with joy at the _laughter_ that accompanied Shepard's response. "Life!"

Liara smiled and reached over to take Shepard's hand. "That is not a very complete answer, Samantha. What started it? What is the holiday for?"

"You are insatiable, Dr T'Soni. Does your quest for knowledge have no bounds?" Shepard grinned and squeezed her lover's hand. "Funny... but St Patrick wasn't even Irish. Before he was declared a saint, he was a wealthy Roman Brit... at age sixteen, he was kidnapped and taken by slavers and ended up tending sheep in the hills of Ireland. He supposedly wrote a _Declaration_ later, in which he claimed that God told him to flee to the coast, where a ship was waiting to take him home. Apparently he did so and once he got back home he entered the priesthood."

Shepard let out a little chuckle. "He later returned to Ireland and spent many years converting the pagans of Northern Ireland to Christianity. Obviously he didn't have much influence in the rest of Ireland, but he did enough to earn sainthood. He died on March 17th and was buried at _Dún Pádraig_ in Northern Ireland."

Liara was confused. "So the date of his _death_ is celebrated with music, dancing and alcohol?"

"He died almost 2000 years ago, the date became a Christian feast day around 500 years ago and it gradually evolved into an official public holiday in Ireland about 300 years ago. Once that happened, the church pretty much lost control of it and the non-Christians... and a lot of non-devout Christians as well, celebrate it however they please... and drinking and dancing is a hell of a lot more fun than sitting in Church!"

Shepard let out a laugh at the scowl that crossed Liara's face. "That seems very... disrespectful... to me. How can you laugh?"

Shepard tried to contain her joviality as she explained. "It's all about perspective, Li. As Druids, we _celebrate_ our Gods with feasts and offerings. They are called _'festive'_-als for a reason. We believe in nature and the _cycles_ of life and death... and prefer to celebrate the _living_ and renewal portions of that. It's not really that different from _Janiris_."

The wrinkle in Liara's brow smoothed out and her lips turned to a light smile. "I can accept that explanation... especially now. I certainly believe we need to be celebrating life and our future. What can I do to help with the planning of this festival?"

Shepard didn't have to think long on the prospect. "Next time Traynor pops in to see Riana, ask her if she'd be willing to tend bar. I'm sure she'll say yes. We'll need to get a list from her on what she remembers people drinking during the party at the apartment." Shepard planted a mischievous smirk on her face. "You can add the Asari drinks to the list... and then we may have to utilize the Broker ships to make a few discrete requisition runs and figure out how to rendezvous with them to get the supplies aboard."

Liara grinned. "_That_ will be easy; simply have them arrive with it... because you do realize we'll have to invite them all to the party?"

Shepard's eyebrows shot up at the thought of gathering the _whole_ crew for the party. "Wouldn't have it any other way, Love!" As Shepard beamed at her, Liara couldn't believe the change that came over Samantha, caused by something as simple as a Saint Patrick's Day celebration. Liara hoped fervently that it sustained her through the next few colonial stop-overs; they could _both_ use a break from the nightmares.

* * *

It had been a long nine months since the destruction of the biggest threat to mankind's… hell, to every species'… continued existence in the galaxy. Engineer Ken Donnelly was lounging in his berth as he thought about this while idly glancing through a technical journal he'd acquired during their last shore leave. Having just come off duty, he was getting ready to go take a shower so he could get in a bit of rack time before his next shift.

It wasn't actually a paper magazine; Gabby had downloaded it to his datapad as a gift during their Christmas break. She had surprised him with it, but the _real_ surprise had been the sudden hug and passionately delivered kiss when she caught him standing _under_ a bulkhead in engineering that had been previously decorated (by a person or persons unknown) with an actual sprig of mistletoe. She had thrown her arms around him and kissed him before he knew what was happening.

Just before setting the datapad down, he spotted an advertisement at the bottom of the page - it was for one of his favorite beverages – a fine Islay single malt Scotch whiskey from a distillery on Lagavulin Bay. Their 'Distillers Edition' whisky was rich and smoky in flavor, a real taste of heaven, unlike anything consumed in the 'colonies'. Few people outside of Scotland and Ireland had any appreciation for Scotch…their taste buds had been permanently ruined from drinking bourbon!

Donnelly sighed as he closed the datapad and set it aside. The likelihood of him getting back to Earth… especially to the Isles, anytime soon was not looking good. They had a number of months left on their tour, and the monotony of traveling from place to place without a military purpose was starting to wear on him. The taste of a fine Scotch was as far away as it had ever been during the war, and there'd been no time to acquire any during the Normandy's refit time on Earth before the invasion.

The Citadel Council, having appointed Shepard the first human Spectre in 2183, had then proceeded to disbelieve and dispute everything she told them in her hunt for _their_ rogue Spectre Saren Arterius. They had as much as branded her a traitor upon her return from a two-year absence, only grudgingly reinstating her status as Spectre on the condition she stay in the Terminus during her campaign against the Collectors. Yet here they were, greedily abusing her as a Council tool, forcing her to complete a victory tour of the major Citadel colonies… a tour longer than the damn war itself. _I already got myself in a pickle with Alliance brass when I spoke my mind after the SR-1 was destroyed. No sense in pissing off the Council as well!_ Sighing again, Donnelly gathered up his bathing supplies and a change of underclothes. Time for a shower and a shave.

* * *

Engineer Gabriella Daniels glanced longingly at the small chronometer displayed in the upper corner of her haptic interface and wished, not for the first time since the start of her shift, that she could somehow speedup the passage of time on a selective basis. She wanted her shift to end, but needed to get her assigned duties completed as well.

Ever since the Normandy had been on this 'victory' tour of the surviving colonies in inner and outer council space, she and Ken Donnelly had been on different shifts. Lieutenant Adams had made it clear he was splitting their shifts in order to better utilize their skills, feeling that both positions being unmanned for ten hours at a time was a poor use of staff resources. As Adams had explained, the Normandy's systems were not being stressed nearly as much as when they had taken on either the Collectors or the Reapers. He no longer needed them both on-duty at the same time to operate the ship at its combat pace; there was a practical side to the schedule as well, as each engineer's skills were being broadened, with Donnelly covering for Gabby while she was off-duty and, conversely, Gabby covering for Ken. With another five hours to go, she turned and looked at Greg Adams and asked, "Lieutenant, I'm at a good stopping point… permission to go get some lunch?"

Adams smiled at her. "Gabby, you know you don't have to ask for permission to eat lunch. Just tell me you're going up for lunch, lock your terminal and go.

"Never felt right doing that, Sir."

Greg shook his head as he replied, "How many times have we had this conversation, Ms Daniels? Who did you ask when you worked for Cerberus? I wasn't here then…"

"We simply told Edi we were going. She monitored our panels for us until we returned."

Adams smiled. "She still monitors your panels, whether you're there or not. Now get going. I can certainly take care of this over-automated engineering marvel until you return." He looked at her a bit more firmly as she hesitated. "Ms Daniels…go eat lunch."

"Yes, Sir."

* * *

Gabby was midway through her meal when Samantha Traynor sat across from her and asked, "Where's Donnelly?"

"Probably asleep." She took a sip of iced tea as she elaborated, "We're on different shifts. I only see 'im briefly twice a day when we overlap. Truth be known, I get more accomplished without 'im distracting me with comments and observations about all the women on the ship." Taking note of the datapad Traynor kept referring to, Gabby asked, "What're you studying there? Looks rather involved."

Sam looked up at her friend as she replied, "Shopping list. Dr T'Soni is involved in planning some kind of party for the crew, and since I served as a bartender at Shepard's party on the Citadel, she asked me to put together a list of everything we used for mixed drinks or straight shots… things people were drinking back then. We'll buy the stuff next time we provision the ship, or procure it through a few clandestine rendezvous with the other broker ships. Mostly standard stuff…some bottled beers, gin, vodka, tequila, bourbon…"

At the last item, Gabby held up her hand. "Wait; did you just say 'bourbon'? Samantha, how much time do you have…that is, how long before you're able to go ashore to buy all this stuff?"

"Not sure. Soon. Why do you ask?"

"Samantha, I have to talk to Ken. Give me a shift before you close out your list. If I know Ken, bourbon will be the last thing he'll want to see on the bar. I'll get back to you."

"Keep it quiet, Gabby. The only people involved are Shepard, Liara and myself. We don't want the entire ship's compliment knowing about this until we're certain we can pull it off, okay?"

"My lips are sealed, Traynor. Talk to you soon."

* * *

Gabby was going over shift change protocol with Ken when she took him into the main engine compartment so they could talk privately. "Kenneth, I need some information, but I need you to swear you'll keep this to yourself."

Ken responded, "Whatever ya need, Gabby. I kinna say no ta you. Wha's on yer mind?"

"There's a move afoot to have a party, involve the entire crew. I have some good intel from Samantha Traynor. Likeliest date is…" she lowered her voice and placed her cheek next to his as she whispered in his ear, "…St Patty's day."

Donnelly nearly blew all hopes of secrecy right there. "St Pa…" he started to say as he pulled abruptly back from Gabby, only to have her firmly clamp a hand over his mouth. She looked at him sternly as she placed the back of her index finger vertically across her lips with the other fingers on her hand splayed out wide in a signal to stop talking. He nodded in agreement, to which she responded by removing her hand from his mouth. In a whisper, he said, "St Patty's day? Will there be pretty girls?" She looked at him with an even harder expression. "Booze? Tell me there 'ill at leas' be booze."

"After the remark about 'pretty girls', of which I should be the _only_ pretty girl you're interested in, I may ask her to bring in American Bourbon." At the look of pure panic on his face, she relented and asked, "What kind of Scotch should Traynor order - two brands, in case one or the other ain't readily available."

Ken didn't even have to think. He hugged her as he whispered back into her ear, "'Distillers Edition' from the Lagavulin Bay distillery. Very rich. Then there's the 'Caol Ila' distillery that produces a Scotch under their name. It's a li'l lighter, but ever' bit as smoky. Several bottles o' each, if ya kinn. Any leftovers will go a long ways to makin' the rest o' the trip a lot more pleasant, at least fer me."

"Great. I'll get Traynor to put these on her list." Gabby gave Ken another unsympathetic look. "Just don't forget this. You were this close," she held a thumb and forefinger close together, as if pinching a piece of cloth and hissed, "_this_ close!… to having to drink whiskey or bourbon." She smiled as she turned and left for the crew deck.

* * *

Edi was always 'awake'. During the times when Flight Lieutenant Jeff Moreau was off duty, Edi stayed on the bridge, monitoring ship's systems as the Normandy traveled through the void towards its next destination. Admittedly, there really wasn't much for her to do, as she was also _in_ the computer servers ahead of the Med Bay. She could have saved the energy needed to operate her mobile platform and piloted the ship from within the server, but Edi had grown used to being… seen, on the bridge, sitting in the co-pilot's seat.

Edi sensed that the crew felt a certain comfort in simply having a physical presence on the bridge when Joker was absent. However, being on the bridge did not mean she was unaware of everything else happening on the ship. Having a quantum computing core based in the Normandy's servers, receiving, sorting, analyzing and storing data from every sensor within and outside of the ship was something she easily did, even as she piloted the ship.

She had heard things. Liara T'Soni and Captain Shepard were planning a party that would eventually involve everyone on the ship, and… the personnel aboard the Broker's other three ships, if the comm traffic was to be believed. She had monitored clandestine conversations between Gabby Daniels and Ken Donnelly, between Gabby and Samantha Traynor, and Liara and Captain Shepard; there had even been comm traffic between Liara and Matriarch Aethyta.

With everything that was going on, Edi's curiosity was piqued. The purpose of the party, as best she could interpret, was to celebrate the death of a Christian saint – a certain Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. Captain Shepard's mother was Irish – Samantha Shepard was a virtual copy of her mother in appearance, possibly even in temperament. Edi performed an extranet search for everything that was known about Saint Patrick and the celebrations of his life… and death.

She discovered the day commemorates Saint Patrick and the arrival of Christianity in Ireland, as well as celebrating the heritage and culture of the Irish in general. Celebrations generally involve public parades, festivals, _céilí_ (traditional Irish Gaelic social gatherings), and the wearing of green attire or shamrocks. There had been a bit of discussion between Liara and Shepard about something called 'green beer'. Edi discovered the traditional meaning was beer not considered ready for consumption. In the mid to late 20th century, people began adding green food coloring to pale beers, thus creating beer that in every other way was the same as the original except for color. She decided to approach the Shadow Broker in her office to ask her what was to be done.

* * *

Liara was checking data feeds when Edi unobtrusively entered the compartment, walked up beside her and quietly waited.

Liara paused the program she was running, straightened and turned to face her visitor. "What can I do for you, Edi?"

Speaking in a voice approaching a whisper, Edi responded, "I have a question, Dr T'Soni."

Liara waited for a couple of seconds before prompting, "Okay… what do you need to ask me?"

A visual inspection of the front of the compartment confirmed Riana was not at her usual post; even so, she responded in a soft voice, "I have been monitoring conversations around the ship; I even know about your trouble sleeping due to Shepard's ongoing nightmares."

"You've been spying on me!? Edi, I would have never thought…"

Edi held her hands up, palms outward, to head off the condemnation from her friend. "I did not monitor the aftermath, Liara. I said I know _of_ it, not what you and Shepard talked about." Seeing Liara's face relax, she continued, "The conversations within the ship were what intrigued me. Apparently, you are planning some sort of ship-wide party, which includes plans to smuggle a large quantity of alcohol infused drinks aboard. If that is the case, I wish to know what I can do to assist."

Liara placed a hand on a hip and cocked an eye at the inquisitive AI, "Edi, we have everything well in hand. I need you to _swear_ to me you won't divulge what you know to the other crew members."

"Oh, I will not tell anyone, Dr T'Soni. But I would like to know how you intend to have the dispensers in the crew lounge generate green beer."

Liara rubbed her crest as she contemplated the question. "I don't believe we've thought that far ahead, Edi. Successfully getting everything and everyone together will be an accomplishment all by itself. Green beer is probably the least of our worries."

"I see." Edi crossed her arms in front of her as she asked, "Would you like me to take care of this for you? It will be relatively easy for me to program the dispensers to add a few drops of green food coloring at the beginning of each 'pour' cycle. The beer will enter the glass as a bright green foamy liquid."

Liara brightened as she thought about Edi's proposal. "That would be perfect, Edi. This… food coloring. It will not affect the flavor of the beer?"

"No. Color will be the only difference. The program will add the correct amount of color for each type of beer, taking into account the differing shades of amber to yellow, so that all of them will appear the exact same shade of green. It will be… fun."

* * *

**T'Soni House Armali, Thessia, Athena Nebula**

Aethyta was thrilled when she was notified of a call from her girl; she excused herself from her meeting with Mozia and jogged down the hall to the communications center, moving quickly to the vid screen. "Hey kiddo! Good to hear from you!"

"Hey, Dad." Liara looked incredibly tired; her shoulders were slumped, her voice was thready and she acted like she had just gotten her ass whipped in some fight.

"Liara. What's wrong?" Aethyta's voice carried a protective growl. "Shepard better be treating you right or I'm gonna kick her ass!"

"No, Dad. You're not." Liara gave a light smile. "But thanks. Somehow, knowing you've always watched out for me, even when I wasn't aware of it, brings a certain level of comfort."

Liara's brow furrowed with concern. "But I _am_ calling about Samantha."

Liara went on to tell Aethyta about the nightmares and how they continued to get worse with every stop they made, no matter what she and Shepard tried to do to allay them. "We've asked the council for a break but poor Tevos might as well be beating her head against a wall for all the good it's done." Tears started to leak down her cheeks and she was glad the fidelity of the vid wasn't good enough for her father to see. "I don't know what else to do, Dad. I need your help."

Aethyta was stunned; Liara had _never_ asked her for help. Admittedly Liara had known about her for less than two years, but Li was a Goddess-be-damned _hero_ and the most powerful information broker in the galaxy. _What by the grace of the Goddess does she expect _me_ to be able to do?_ "Uh... what exactly do you need from _me_, kid?"

Liara's hand went up to wipe across her crests in frustration and, without thinking, she brushed away the tears on her face, which Aethyta immediately recognized for what it was. "Oh, damn it, kiddo! Don't cry... not when I'm a fucking half-galaxy away from you and unable to do a single damn thing to help you from here!"

Liara let out a light laugh through her tears. "Sorry, Dad. Here I am, all pleased the vid quality isn't good enough for you to notice. Wiping my face was kind of a dead give-away, wasn't it?"

"Yeah. It was. So what? You need some ideas on what to try next?" With a nod from Liara, Aethyta continued, "I assume you've already tried melding... and sex... and sex with melding."

Liara blushed heavily and even though the vid quality wouldn't show it, she knew her father realized when Aethyta broke out in laughter. "Still such a prude. You've spent _way_ too much time with those Humans. You need to come home and spend time with the commandos at Janiris. You _are_ still a maiden..."

"Dad! Not helping! And you know I'm promised to Shepard and... and I am _not_ talking to you about my love life! Goddess, you almost got me that time." Liara shook her head. "No fair taking advantage of me when I'm so worried about Samantha."

"Aahhhh. You're right. Sorry." Aethyta paused as she contemplated the situation. "There's always alcohol... but I doubt you can carry enough on that ship of hers to keep her drunk; not with those damn nanites that pull it out of her system so fast. Is there anything that you can distract her with? There's got to be something she likes to do."

"We _are_ planning a party, but the planning portion is done, so now it's back to the routine with nothing more to discuss about it. Rehashing the details is more frustrating than anything; we simply need the date to get here."

_Party?_ Aethyta's interest was piqued and Liara was not at her best at the moment. In her most earnest voice, the matriarch queried, "What's the date? How much longer do you need to last before you get a break?"

Aethyta's eyes lit with glee when Liara answered without thinking of the consequences. "March 17th. It's still three weeks and six more of those damn memorial services away."

Aethyta smiled in triumph, even if she did take advantage of her daughter's preoccupation to get the information. "Why don't you use your info network to inform the colonies that Captain Shepard will be happy to partake in anything they want... _except_ memorials. Tell the _truth_, Liara. Tell them she _needs_ to focus on the future of the living. Get the word out, whether the _Council_ wants it or not. You and Shepard, more than anyone, know what the Council's secrets and lies do to people. Don't you _dare_ let them do that to _her_. _Not one more day._"

"I've tried, Dad." Liara sighed. "I asked Shepard and she said no. She feels it's her duty."

"Fuck duty." Aethyta growled. "Make it plain to her that it's killing her... and it's killing you to watch it happen. Look at you! You look like you just watched Thessia fall all over again... only this time, what you're watching is the fall of your bondmate! I can tell you're tired, Little Wing. Your whole damn body is screaming defeat. Don't let it beat you. You know what you need to do, so _do_ it. Sometimes folks need a hand up, even if just for a second, so they can see the shit pile they've been lying in and take the steps to fix it."

Liara narrowed her eyes and stared at her father. "Are you talking about what I need to do with Shepard... or are you speaking to me?"

"_There's_ the Dr Liara T'Soni we all know; the one who kicked the Reapers' asses!" Aethyta's face split with a relieved grin. "Fix it, Liara. I know you can... and Shepard's strong. You'll both come out of this with your bond even stronger. Goddess knows how that's even _possible_, but it will be."

"Goddess. You make it all sound so simple." Liara stood up a little taller. "Thanks, Dad. Truly. That's exactly what I needed... a refocus." Liara smiled softly. "I love you."

"Oh, well... fuck." Aethyta's eyes teared and she wiped them away quickly. "Now you went and did it. I... aaahhh, _shit_. I love you too, Liara." Aethyta paused for only a moment. "So, uhm. Where's the Normandy going to be for this party? Send me the coordinates for the rendezvous point and I'll bring alcohol, my bartending skills, and... fresh fruit and fish from Thessia?"

Thinking about her father's propensity to mix drinks _purposely_ to put people under the table, Liara was preparing to deny Aethyta permission to attend, seeing as everyone on the Normandy had to be up and back at work the next day. The matriarch saw it on her face... so added that last part on impulse; there was no way Liara would turn down fresh stores from home. Her daughter's first words were aborted and she closed her mouth for a couple of seconds, contemplating. "Fine. You _know_ I can't say no to that. You'll get the coordinates." Liara paused as a smirk spread across her face. "But since you're coming, I'll need you to pick up a few more people at the Citadel on your way through. I'll send you a list of names."

Aethyta smiled. "Thanks, Liara. Oh... and... good luck with Shepard, kiddo." Aethyta's smile turned back to a look of concern. "You let me know if that doesn't work. I'll raise hell at the Council chambers until someone changes their mind or I get arrested for disturbing the peace."

"_That_?" Liara laughed. "That I'd like to see! Got to go, Dad. Thanks again, and... you know."

Aethyta said nothing more; she simply nodded and terminated the link, happy that by the end of the conversation, Liara had formulated a plan and was actually able to laugh again. Aethyta grinned; she had plans of her own to make.


	2. Part 2

_Notes:_

_Amantia _\- Lover (Thessian)

_Grá mo chroí _\- love of my heart (Gaelic)

_Hooley - _Party or celebration (Gaelic)

_Kena sa'ki - _literally "the heart of evil" (Thessian)

_Siame _\- "one who is all", a loved one cherished above all others (Thessian)

* * *

**PART 2**

**T'Soni House Armali, Thessia, Athena Nebula**

"Matriarch Aethyta! They said I had a call from Thessia and for the life of me I couldn't figure out who would be calling. It's so good to know you made it! Liara must be over the moon!" Hannah's face was bright with honest enthusiasm and Aethyta hated to darken her day, but felt obligated to ensure Hannah was informed.

"Congratulations on making Rear Admiral; quite the accomplishment. What's in store for you next?" Aethyta hated small talk, but had to work up her nerve before she could be painfully blunt with Shepard's mother.

"Oh, who knows? With all the ships that were destroyed, the chances of getting a dreadnaught anytime soon are pretty low. I've always preferred space, but I don't know. Given all that's happened, perhaps it's time I settle in someplace where I can prop my feet up in front of a fire at night and read a good book."

Aethyta grinned, "If Shepard... Samantha... is anything like you, somehow that image doesn't seem right to me."

Hannah smiled in return. "No, I suppose not, but old age _and_ a galactic war changes a person... don't they?" Her smile faded along with Aethyta's.

"Yeah. They do." Aethyta took a deep breath. "Listen. This isn't exactly a social call and I hate to ask you this but... when was the last time you talked to your daughter?"

Hannah's brow furrowed with concern, but her military bearing kept her from displaying too much emotion. "Samantha? It's been almost a month and from your tone, I assume that it's been too long. What's going on?"

Aethyta quickly relayed all that Liara had passed on, including her offer to go raise hell at the Council. The more Aethyta explained, the more angry Hannah's face became. "What _is_ it about my daughter that she never _tells_ me these things? Why am I always the _last_ to know? Were you aware I didn't even know she was _alive_ after the first Normandy was destroyed! I had to find out from _Liara_! I swear. That child..."

Aethyta smiled. "Don't feel bad; all kids are like that. Besides, I think the only folks that _did_ know were Cerberus and Liara. I had an inkling, especially after _you_ showed up on Illium. Figured there wasn't much else that would get you out that way." Aethyta shook her head. "Anyway, it killed Liara to ask _me_ for help; shows me exactly how _desperate_ she is. Soooo, there's another reason I called. I figured you'd also like to know the Normandy is holding a St Paddy's day festival..." She watched Hannah's eyes light up as she continued, "...aaand, I bribed myself an invitation. I think I need to bring a date."

Hannah concentrated for a moment on what Aethyta was saying before it finally dawned on her. "Oh. Oh! I... uh."

"Relax, Hannah. It's not a proposition." Aethyta laughed as she watched the older Shepard's face turn red. "I'm dating a fellow matriarch here. Merely looking at a way for you to get a foot in the door. I'm going, so it's easy enough for the T'Soni VIP transport to swing through Arcturus on the way. I'm thinking it'd do Sh... Samantha a world of good to have her momma show up."

Hannah nodded. "I agree. Thank you. You've got yourself a date, Aethyta. I don't need to worry about getting hunted down by some 'ex-commando captain' Asari Matriarch, do I?"

Aethyta chuckled; the woman's smile told her Hannah was joking. "No, Mozia's not the jealous type. We're too damn old to care about that shit anymore."

"Mozia?" Hannah's eyes opened wide. "That's the Regent of the estate, yes? Samantha's told me about her. Apparently a nice catch, Aethyta. You'll have to tell me all about her at the party. In the mean time, I'll call Steven Hackett as soon as we get off this call. I don't know if he can do anything, but he can certainly contact Ambassador Osoba. Not sure how much influence he'll have either, but he's the most likely Council candidate, so they won't be able to completely ignore him. They'll want him on their side someday, hopefully soon!"

"Osoba?" Aethyta ran through her memory quickly. "He's the one with the kid that died on Benning, isn't he? I remember Liara telling me the story of the Cerberus shit that happened there. That's good. He'll feel like he owes Shep a favor... and I think we need all the help we can get on this one."

"Agreed. Thank you for calling, Aethyta... and thanks for the invite. I'll need to take leave, so... what? Pick up at Arcturus when?" Hannah raised her eyebrows in expectation of an answer.

"On the seventeenth Admiral. For us, it's a quick trip to the relay. We'll bring VIP-1 to Arcturus and then back to Sol. It's a direct hop out to the Rift which is where the rendezvous will be. The Normandy is coming back to civilization from out in the Veil; they'll be returning from Rannoch. We can arrive at Arcturus by noon and we'll easily catch up to the Normandy by 2 PM. We can return at your leisure; we have nothing but time, so we're on your schedule."

"Thank you, Aethyta." Hanna smiled broadly. "You... never mind. I was going to say you have no idea what this means to me, but I'll bet you do." Hannah studied her calendar briefly before looking back up. "I can get three days, so we don't have to come back until the evening of the nineteenth."

"Excellent! We'll see you then. You know how to reach me if something changes." Aethyta smiled and waved at Hannah as her image faded away.

* * *

**SSV Normandy, Milky Way Galaxy (at large)**

"Captain, we're here." Joker's voice came over Shepard's private channel and she smiled.

"Thanks, Joker. Any sign of anyone else yet?" Shepard glanced at her chrono; she expected no one for at least thirty minutes.

"No, Ma'am. You want us in stealth mode?"

Shepard laughed, "No, Jeff. We actually want people to find us this time. I know... it's weird."

Joker let out a light chuckle. "You got that right! We've been doing this for months and I still feel like we should be running silent, operating in full stealth mode and scanning every system we enter... just because!"

Edi came on the line, "Normandy is locked in position, static defenses set and long-range scanners are activated, Captain."

"Thanks, Edi! Why don't you two lock down the bridge and come join the party? If something pops up, Edi can fly the Normandy from anywhere on the ship anyway, so you might as well relax and have some fun."

"You heard the captain, Edi, and damn, it still sounds strange to call her the captain. I've been referring to her as 'Commander' for so long, it's almost automatic." Joker eased his lanky frame out of his chair with an assist from his copilot. "Thanks."

"You are welcome, Jeff." Edi waited for him to begin walking aft. "You appear to be moving with less apparent difficulty. It seems the bone weaves Dr Chakwas performed have significantly improved your mobility."

As the segmented door retracted and he began walking past the airlock towards the CIC, he responded, "Your powers of observation are astounding Edi. I… wait, you didn't deserve that from me. I'm sorry, Edi. I didn't mean to sound so snarky…not to you. You're the best thing that ever happened to me."

He looked at her as they made their way through the tactical passageway. "I was so damned afraid I'd lost you when the crucible fired, Edi. Most miserable two weeks of my life!"

"Then perhaps Shepard is correct in her assumption that we _all_ need this festival." Edi recalled the conversation in the loft and Shepard's answer to Liara. "When Dr T'Soni inquired as to the purpose of celebrating this holiday, the captain's answer was a single word. Life."

* * *

Shepard smiled and turned to the bathroom and shouted to Liara. "You almost ready?"

Shepard was in her jeans and boots with her emerald-green button down shirt; she was very comfortable, it matched the occasion and the outfit was Liara's favorite, so there really wasn't any decision to be made. Liara stepped out of the bathroom in the full-length gown Shepard had first seen on Illium; it was emerald green to match Shepard's shirt, with a wide white stripe that ran top-to-bottom down the center of her front. She was pulling on the arm-length gloves as she spoke, "Yes, _Siame_."

She stopped and looked at Samantha appraisingly, raised her brow markings and held a hand out, swirling a finger in a circle. Shepard smiled and chuckled lightly as she slowly spun around. Liara stepped closer and ran her hand down Shepard's side and then across her butt as the Captain continued her turn. Liara's hand 'stuck' to Shepard's hip and she rolled Shepard into an embrace as she finished her circle. "Goddess forgive me, but I do _love_ the way you look in your jeans."

Shepard leaned her head forward and lightly touched foreheads with her lover. "_Grá mo chroí, _you're just lucky we have guests coming or you'd never make it out of the room."

Liara laughed as she slapped Shepard on the behind. "You call _that_ lucky?"

"Liara T'Soni!" Shepard's eyes went wide in surprise. "You've been speaking with your father again, haven't you?"

"Yes, I have, but _that_ is beside the point." She smiled and gave Shepard a quick kiss before taking a step back and reaching for Samantha's hand. "I appreciated this outfit _long_ before I ever knew who my father was!"

With a smirk on her face, Shepard accepted Liara's hand and they walked together to the elevator to make their way to the crew deck.

* * *

The first ship to arrive was the _Aletheia_, and Judea brought the ship expertly alongside. Exactly as she had done after the Collector Base run through the Omega-4 Relay, the _Aletheia_ hard-docked at the airlock. They would stay connected for the duration; they had nine empty berths for folks like Aethyta and those she was picking up along the way. Miranda and Judea were first off, hand-in-hand, and Shepard smiled as Liara greeted them with a smile and a welcoming hug. Sellis Boni and Iryna Velros were directly on their heels, carrying a couple of crates of something, which everyone quickly discerned as yet more alcohol when Sellis shouted out, "Where's the bar?"

Shepard looked over at their lead analyst. "Yo! Miri? I gather you briefed them on the holiday accordingly, seeing as they all have at least something green attached to their persons?"

Miranda sauntered over and looked at Shepard critically. "You doing alright, Shepard? You look like you've lost weight... you should be relaxing and getting a little fat, now the war's over."

Shepard frowned. "It's not over for us. Not yet. The schedule the council has set for us is brutal." Her eyes drifted over to Liara before coming back to Miranda. "But for some reason, the last two stops have had fewer obligations... well, Rannoch was easy, too, but I'm not counting that one. Tali didn't let them do _anything_ that would overly stress us." Shepard's eyes drifted to the floor and her voice got quiet. "I'm pretty sure Liara told her I've been having a rough go of it."

"Uh uh. None of that now. This here's a festival, not a cry in your green beer pity party. Sorry I asked." Miranda stepped up and gave Samantha a tight hug and a kiss on the cheek. "We won, Shepard. Somehow, you dragged our worthless asses through all that mess and pulled us out this end of it." She stepped back and smiled as she reached over and took Judea's hand. "And some of us came out better than we went in... and that is all due to you and Liara."

Shepard gave Judea a quick hug. "Good to see you too, Jude. How's Miranda treating you?"

Judea smiled, "Better than any pilot deserves, Shepard. It pays to sleep with the boss."

Miranda slapped her on the shoulder and rolled her eyes. "Enough of that! Come on; let's say hi to the rest of the gang."

Shepard laughed as they walked away. "Be sure to talk to Liara, Jude... I can only hope she agrees with you!"

* * *

When the _Rakhana_ showed up and Livos had it parked in a stationary orbit off the Normandy's port side behind the _Aletheia_, Miranda rode the shuttle out with Cortez to pick up the crew. She immediately wrapped Oriana up in a tight embrace. "God, Ori! It's so good to see you!"

Ori gave Miranda a big hug back. "You too, Miri! I love the job, and the crew is great, but... God! The _Rakhana_ is a small ship. It wasn't so bad when we were doing missions and we were on and off, but these last few months have been a bit tedious. I'm thinking of talking to Liara about getting a slightly larger ship. I mean, it originally belonged to Feron, and since the _Kena sa'ki _is no longer with us, I think we should upgrade, transfer the equipment and then sell it off."

Miranda smiled, "Sounds like a good idea... but get your numbers together and prepare a case for it. And do _not_ talk to her about it today; no business allowed. It's a holiday so shop talk is banned. In the mean time, at least while you're here, we still have three empty berths on the Aletheia if you want to be closer or have a change of scenery for a couple of days."

Oriana's eyes lit up. "Absolutely! We all brought a bag with us, and I wasn't really looking forward to bunking on the deck of the shuttle bay as part of the commando reunion." Ori blushed and glanced at her companions, who were laughing. "No offense, guys!"

Livos chuckled. "None taken, Oriana. I think we all expected you to stay with your twin."

When the shuttle returned from the _Rakhana_ to the Normandy, Riana was waiting. The doors opened and her face lit with a smile when her old sparring partner walked off. "Allia! How are you doing, you big lug?"

Allia scooped her off her feet and wrapped her in a big bear hug. "Ri! Goddess, it's good to see you! You look great! The Normandy is treating you well."

Riana smiled and stuck her hand out behind her, pulling Samantha Traynor up beside her. "I'd like you to meet Samantha Traynor, Operations Specialist, Signals Analyst... and my _amantia_."

Allia stopped cold and stared at Traynor for a second before her eyes drifted back to Riana. "Really?" As Traynor started to blush at the scrutiny, the large commando took a sudden step forward and crushed Riana in another hug. "Goddess, Ri! I'm so happy for you." She dropped her back to the deck. "I honestly was starting to wonder..."

Riana slipped an arm around Samantha's waist. "I know... and so was Sammi." She glanced at Traynor and gave her a little squeeze. "She was very patient with me and she eventually got the whole story."

Traynor held her hand out flat and Allia glanced at it for a second before she plastered a wide smile on her face and laid her hand on top, palm to palm. "Pleasure to meet you, Sammi. You be careful with this one. She's young and impetuous."

Traynor laughed, "Oh, don't I know it! Half her ideas are a bit dodgy, and the other half are downright barmy. But I have to admit I'm never bored!"

Riana laughed at the expression on Allia's face. "Here." She punched up a program on her omnitool and sent it to her old friend. "Load that add-on into your translator and it will make your life much easier!"

Traynor's face turned red. "Sorry! I'm so used to Riana understanding me, I forgot. I'll try to remember to stick to standard Galactic! What I said was half her ideas are dubious and the others are just plain insane."

Riana laughed again, "Come on. It gets easier after a couple of drinks!" She glanced up at the rest of the party; Oriana had already wandered off with Miranda, but Livos Tanni and Sella Temi were still there. "Well, come on! You two waiting for personal invitations?"

Livos looked at her with disapproval, "Have you forgotten everything I taught you? I was going to say hello to our hostesses, first."

Riana laughed, "You're here for three days and Shepard and Liara are swamped. We'll catch up to them later as they start to circulate. Come on, Liv. Don't be a crab."

Traynor was in heaven; she hadn't anticipated that hanging out with Riana was going to get her surrounded by an entire troupe of gorgeous Asari commandos.

* * *

VIP-1 was next to arrive and they slipped in quietly to the _Aletheia_'s shuttle bay. Liara's omnitool pinged and Shepard glanced over at her. "What's up, Liara?"

"Oh, nothing. A query I was running just finished. I simply forgot to turn the notification off, with everything that's happening." The Asari smiled, knowing Shepard still had no idea who was about to arrive. "Don't worry, Samantha. I'm not going _anywhere_."

Judea and Miranda slipped out to greet them under the guise of realizing they had left one of the cases of Elasa behind and had to go fetch it. They quickly got Aethyta, Hanna Shepard, Kasumi Goto, Jondum Bau, Garrus Vakarian and Desis Vyessan assigned berths aboard the _Aletheia_ so they could drop their bags and get to the party. Aethyta had gotten to know at least everyone's names during the short hop over so was prepared to give introductions, when Miranda interrupted. "It's ok, Matriarch. Everyone here knows everyone else except perhaps our newest Turian friend."

Miranda's gaze went to Garrus for the introduction, but working at the Turian Citadel Embassy accustomed Desis to meeting new people and, after quickly introducing herself, she offered a quick explanation of how she met Garrus and then-Commander Shepard one night at the Silversun Casino as the group took the short elevator ride down to the crew deck. When the elevator doors opened; the entire group fell silent, knowing this was Liara's surprise for Shepard. The Captain had no idea _any_ of them were coming.

Hannah walked out and located her daughter with a quick glance. Walking over quietly, which wasn't difficult in the middle of a raucous party, she suddenly cleared her throat. "What's it take to get a hug from the Captain of this boat?"

Shepard almost dropped her drink. She spun around, wide-eyed, and looked at the smiling woman standing in front of her. "Mom!"

She spun back and shoved her bottle of beer into a grinning Liara's hand before turning and taking two running steps to scoop her mother up in a hug and spin with her in a circle. She set her back down on the deck and quickly kissed her on the cheek. "How in the hell?" Her glance traveled back over her shoulder to a very smug looking Asari.

She flashed Liara a happy smile and turned back to her mother. "How did you get here?"

A familiar, gravelly voice chimed in from her side. "Damn, Shepard. How'd you survive this long being so unobservant?"

Shepard turned again to put the face to the voice. "Matriarch Aethyta. Should have known I couldn't have a party involving alcohol without you finding a way to crash it, even if you did have to travel from the other side of the galaxy!"

Shepard gave her a flippant matriarch salute and Aethyta growled, "Knock that shit off, Shepard. Now. Where the hell's the bar?" As Shepard was pointing in one direction, Aethyta was pointing over her shoulder. "Thanks... and by the way, you have more company yet."

Before she even realized what Aethyta was talking about, another recognizable voice, with its distinctive sub-harmonics and flanging tone, rang out behind her. "Shepard!" Samantha whipped her head around at the sound of the familiar voice, knowing exactly who she would see. No one else in the entire galaxy had a voice like that – it was so smooth it could cut through glass without shattering it.

She literally tackled the big Turian from the front, throwing her arms around him in a hug that might have put a Krogan to shame. "By the Gods, Garrus. It is so damned good to see you! It's been too long!" She shifted her hands so she could grasp his upper arms. "You look good!" She shook his arms slightly as if testing his armor. "Nice to know you didn't have to take any more rockets to the face! And who…" she looked around him to his companion, "…might this lovely person be?"

"Shepard, it's good to see all this hero worship hasn't changed you!" A shadow passed briefly across Shepard's eyes before she had the mask firmly back in place, but not before Garrus saw it. "Umm, sorry. Guess the Council has been abusing you these past months? Well, we won't talk about that tonight, will we?" Garrus turned and reached back to his companion, taking her near hand and gently pulling her up beside him. "Dee, this is Captain Samantha Hannah Shepard, _Admiral_ Shepard's daughter. Garrus flared his mandibles, an imitation of a human smile, as he looked at his companion. "Shepard, this is my bride soon to be, Desis Vyessan."

Shepard's mouth nearly fell open at this revelation; she brought up her hand to meet the taloned hand of the beautiful Turian female. "It is a real pleasure to see you again, Desis. I hope this old soldier hasn't filled your head with too many lies about me." She smiled as she glanced at Garrus then returned her gaze to Desis.

"She's teasing _me_ when she says that, Dee." He looked at Desis, the passion he felt for her readily evident in his sparkling blue eyes. Looking back at Shepard, he continued, "Actually, I haven't told her much about you at all, Shepard, except that there isn't an empty bottle anywhere in the galaxy that doesn't fear your prowess with a sniper rifle."

Desis dropped Shepard's hand, and then hooked her arm under Garrus' upper arm. "I would love to get to know you better, Captain." Her tone suggested she was happy to have been included in the gathering and Shepard immediately liked her voice; she sounded like a younger version of Garrus with a voice pitched an octave higher. The flanging and sub-harmonics were nearly identical in pitch and timbre. "Maybe you can fill me in on all the times you fought together against the Reapers."

Garrus let out a laugh. "We had more fights against Cerberus than Reapers, Dee. Seemed like every time we set down, there they were. The humans have an expression…what _was_ that Shepard? Ah yes, I remember. We thought we'd 'kicked an anthill' sometimes. Can't believe how damned many there were!"

Shepard couldn't stop grinning at her Turian friend. "I have it on good authority that there is some extra-fine Turian brandy coming on board. Check with our bartender… Samantha Traynor placed the order.

Garrus interrupted her, delight plain in his tone. "Traynor's here? Spirits. It'll be great to see her. Come on, Dee. We need to find her at the bar. We'll talk later, Shepard. And… thanks… for inviting us. I never expected you'd get to the bar before me."

"Thanks for _coming_, Garrus!" As she stepped back to her mother's side and wrapped an arm around her waist, Shepard glanced around warily, wondering who else the matriarch managed to bring along to crash the party. Out of the corner of her eye, she thought she saw a shimmer in the air, turned to look directly at the apparent spot and immediately growled out, "Kasumi Goto, show yourself!"

Much to her surprise, a grinning Jondum Bau materialized in front of her. As she stared at him in shock, Kasumi shimmered into view a few steps to his left. "I win! I told you my cloak was better!"

"Greetings, Captain! A pleasure to see you again." Jondum nodded politely as Kasumi slid up to his side.

Before Shepard could say anything, Kasumi smiled and spoke, "We're here for a few days, Shep, so spend some time with your mom! We'll catch up later!"

A startled Shepard stuttered, "A... a few days?" Liara came to her rescue and looped her arm through the Captain's.

"Thank you, Kas." Liara's glance shifted. "And it's great to see you Spectre Bau. We'll definitely talk later. Did you manage to acquire the Turian brandy I inquired about?"

"You know, that stuff's expensive!" Kasumi looked honestly put out and Shepard was very confused by her expression. The master thief chuckled. "Relax, Shepard. It's entirely your fault, you know. Since I've been hanging out with Jon, I'm staying on the straight and narrow. I actually _paid_ for that case!"

Shepard's confusion turned to surprise and Liara gasped. "You bought a whole case?" With a nod from Kasumi, Liara shook her head. "Goddess. Send me a bill and I'll take a stipend from the Brokerage funds to cover it. That had to cost a small fortune!"

As Kasumi walked away, she was laughing. "It did! And already done. You paid me last week!"

Shepard looked at Liara in amazement, "Who else do you have coming that I didn't know about?"

"No one, _Siame._" Liara smiled softly. "All we're missing now is the _Chiroquol_..."

"Or not." The voice of Steve Cortez cut in. "I do believe I have just shuttled in our last guests... and seeing as my duties are done, I'm joining the party!" Steve wandered over to Ashley and James, who were already busy playing some sort of drinking game.

Liara dropped Shepard's arm and Shepard released her mom's waist so the three of them could turn to the elevator. Everyone had a smile on their face, but Hannah was particularly happy to see Arlyna Sheya and Niria Phessi, Shepard's old biotics instructors from Arcturus station. Karin had also joined them; she had gone out on the shuttle with Cortez to greet them and bring them back to the Normandy, along with Barla Von and the last of the T'Soni commandos to join the party, Tra'ana Iremi. As Shepard and Hannah spoke with their old friends, Liara gave Ana a big hug. "Welcome! Make yourself at home... I'm pretty sure I saw the rest of house T'Soni head for the bar."

As Ana headed off, Liara turned to the only Volus in the group with a pleased smile on her face. "Barla Von. I am glad you decided to join us. Arlyna told me you considered staying on the Chiroquol."

"Yes, well. That was before your very pleasant shuttle pilot explained to me how one of your engineers, a Kenneth Donnelly, reconfigured the environmental controls on your spare shuttle to provide me with a suitable high-pressure ammonia atmosphere for the duration of my stay." The Volus' speech was broken, as always, by the intermittent 'sshhk' sound of his rebreather. "It was an unexpected consideration on your part. Thank you."

Liara's smile widened, "You are most certainly welcome! You are, after all, an essential member of our team, and it would be thoughtless to force you to sequester yourself over something easily fixed with a few adjustments to some environmental controls."

The Volus chuckled. "You honor me, Dr T'Soni. I imagine your engineer will describe it a bit differently than 'a few adjustments' to the shuttle controls should I have the opportunity to ask him."

"Perhaps so. Please," Liara waved her hand to indicate the entire deck, "...make yourself at home. If I remember correctly, a friend of yours has joined us. I do believe you'll find Matriarch Aethyta running the bar in the port-side crew lounge."

"Aahhhh. You know me better than I realized, Doctor." Barla Von gave her a little bow.

"Nonsense. It's just that my father likes to brag and tell stories." Liara nodded her head politely in return. "If you should need anything, please do not be afraid to ask. Enjoy your visit to the Normandy, and enjoy the party Barla Von." With one last 'sshhk' and a wave, the Volus moved off to find the bar.

Liara happily turned back to Shepard and her special guests. "So, now that the hostess has greeted all her employees... What have I missed?"

Shepard smiled and pulled her in with an arm around her waist. "Not much, really. Since we talk to Arlyna and Niria fairly regularly, we caught Mom up on what's been happening out here while she's stuck on Arcturus and helping to organize the rebuild of Earth."

"Sounds good." Liara leaned into Shepard's side, "...but what I'd really like is for the music to start and maybe get a dance out of you."

"Oh! Well then, by all means!" Samantha turned to her mother, "Mom, if you would excuse me please... duty calls."

Hannah beamed at daughter. "Absolutely, Sam. I haven't spoken to Arlyna and Niria in ages, and we can't exactly talk about _you_ if you're here, so off you go. Enjoy yourself. It's your party, after all!"

Within a few moments, Irish folk songs started trickling out of speakers all over the Normandy.

* * *

Gabby locked her console and signaled Edi. "I'm logged off the propulsion panel, Edi. Turning it over to you." She looked to her left at her partner. "Kenneth?"

Ken Donnelly was engaged in a few final details concerning the Normandy's power and environmental controls, apparently having a bit of a problem with locking down the power supplies to the deck-3 refrigeration systems. "I kinna understand why the power draw is so high."

"In case you haven't noticed, there _is_ a party going on up there," Gabby answered, "and if you don't get that panel locked down, I'm simply going to leave you here by yourself."

Donnelly finally got the problem located and corrected. Gabby moved to stand beside him as he hurriedly locked the panel down and reported to Edi. "I'm clear of environmental and power control, Edi. You have the controls."

The confirmation for both of them came over the ship's comm system. "Engineers Daniels, Donnelly; Lieutenant Adams," Edi's no nonsense voice intoned. "I am controlling your systems. Please join the crew on deck three."


	3. Part 3

Notes:

_CIC - Combat Information Center_

_Grá mo Chroí - Love of my heart (Gaelic)_

_Gráim thú - I love you (Gaelic)_

_Hooley - Party or celebration (Gaelic)_

_Nara - literally "bearer"; one who shoulders another's burden, aids others in difficult times (Thessian)_

_Siame - "one who is all", a loved one cherished above all others (Thessian)_

* * *

**PART 3**

**SSV Normandy, Milky Way Galaxy (at large)**

Gabby and Ken exited engineering through the port side access hatch. "Hang on half a sec, Gabby. I wanta get something from the port cargo compartment. Be right back." Gabby looked at him quizzically…he was acting odd, even for Kenneth. She nodded to him and then turned to the Lieutenant. "Go on up, Sir. We'll be right behind you."

"Sure you don't want me to hold the elevator for you, Ms Daniels?"

"You go ahead, Sir. No use waiting for us." Gabby smiled as she waved him towards deck three.

Greg nodded to Gabby, opened the door and disappeared inside. As Gabby turned back towards the observation windows, she noted the last shuttlecraft had been offloaded and parked. The door to the port side cargo compartment opened and a nervous looking Donnelly came towards her. She turned her attention towards him and asked, "Ready to go up?"

"Gabby, before we go up ta join the party, I have a present for ya. I've been wanting to give this to ya for a while now, but just never felt like it was the right time, ya know?"

Gabby looked at Ken with a half smile. "Kenneth, you don't need a special time to give me… a present, or… whatever. Come on, let's go up."

"Gabby, wait." Ken stopped right in front of her. "Ya know, I'm not sure you're aware of how much you mean ta me." Ken nervously placed his arms around her and pulled her gently to him. "I love you, Gabriella Daniels." Gabby started to interrupt; Ken kissed her full on the mouth.

Gabby struggled for a moment before giving in to the kiss. She had always initiated hugs and kisses before; she tried and couldn't remember the last time Ken had done _anything_ like this. She broke the kiss so she could breathe and said, "Kenneth, what the hell? I don't know what to say. I…" she gave up and pressed her lips to his before he could move or talk.

It was Ken's turn to break the kiss. "Gabby. Look. I have to do this now, afore I lose me courage. I haven't had anythin' to drink, jus' so ya know…not even a wee dram. I'm stone sober, I swear." He pulled one arm loose so he could reach into a pocket. The case he pulled out was small, covered in white. He held it up between them, tilted the lid open to reveal the contents and said, "Gabby. Would you do me the honor of becoming me wife?"

Gabby couldn't help it…tears began running down her cheeks as she started crying. She could see from the expression on his face he thought he'd done something wrong. She quickly placed her palms on his cheeks and with her voice hitching, replied, "Ken…I…I would be honored…to marry you. I never thought…aw shit, kiss me again!"

* * *

The elevator door opened onto the deck three passageway. There were a few people lounging about at either end, where the doors to the crew lounges had been locked open. Ken looked at Gabby as he took her hand…a hand that now sported a diamond engagement ring on her third finger…and walked off the elevator and around to the starboard side bulkhead. He was headed to the makeshift bar being presided over by a rather grumpy looking Asari Matriarch, hoping that Gabby had been correct in her assessment.

Stopping in front of the Asari, he nervously asked, "Would it be possible fer me to get a wee dram of Caol Ila? It's a very fine…"

Matriarch Aethyta had heard all about these two Humans from Samantha Traynor. "I know what the hell it is. Who do you think brought it on board in the first place?" She reached down to the bottom shelf, brought up a bottle bearing what Ken felt must be liquid gold, poured a finger's worth in two small glasses, pushed them in front of him and said, "Knock yourself out… literally."

Ken picked up one glass and handed it to Gabby, then picked up his own glass. Nodding to Aethyta, he turned towards Gabby, clinked her glass with his and said, "To us!" then downed the entire drink in one swallow.

As his eyes watered and he gasped for breath, Aethyta refilled his glass, then poured one for herself. "Kid, you better learn to pace yourself. That shit will set you free!" With that, she clinked his glass, then Gabby's, said, "To both of you," and downed it with no more difficulty than if she'd just taken a drink of water, causing Ken to stare at her with admiration plain on his face. It was going to be an extremely interesting evening.

* * *

**SSV Normandy, ****_much later..._**

James Vega and Ashley Williams, having each downed several rather potent drinks, were sitting on the couch closest to the aft edge of the viewport in the port side crew lounge; they had decided they needed to eat something to offset the alcohol in their stomachs, so were snacking on some of the hors d'oeuvres set out for the purpose. James perked up when his friend Steve Cortez entered and went to the bar. "Hey! Esteban!" he shouted over the sounds of conversation carrying through the compartment. Waving a massive arm in the air, he added, "Come join us!"

Cortez ordered up his drink, then turned and waved it over his head at James and Ashley, pantomiming a _'you want one?'_ motion to the pair, to which James held up two fingers in a 'V'. Steve quickly grabbed two more drinks and made his way to the couches. "LC? Vega? Enjoying yourselves I see."

Vega took one of the glasses off Steve's hands and handed it to Ashley; he took the second glass, held it up in front of his friend as he looked admiringly at Ashley and said, "Que con muchas curvas, y me sin frenos, señorita"

Ashley looked at Vega, then at Cortez who was grinning like a bad little boy on the school playground. Returning her gaze to Vega, she retorted, "I'm not nearly drunk enough to understand what you just said, Lieutenant, but obviously Cortez doesn't need to be blasted to understand, so," turning her gaze back to Steve, "what exactly did he just say, Lieutenant?"

Steve shook his head, took a swig from his glass and whistled, "Damn! They got some _really_ good stuff for this shindig! And I've already forgotten what Mr. Vega said, Commander… sorry. Booze has a way of screwing with my short-term memory. But hey!" He looked at the table sitting behind the enclosure. "That table has been neglected for _way_ too long. What say we gather a few… victims, Mr. Vega? Play a few hands of _take no prisoners_ poker?

Vega looked over his shoulder, then back to Cortez. "I think there just may be hope for you after all, Esteban." Heaving himself to his feet, he said, "Let's go find a few… players, shall we?" When Ash started to rise, Vega looked at her, smiled and said, "Stay right there, señorita. We'll need you as well."

Ashley smiled back and said, "Only because I need to take your money, Vega."

* * *

It wasn't long before a somewhat rowdy crowd of people were putting the table 'requisitioned' from the Shadow Broker's ship to good use. In addition to Vega, Cortez and Williams, Donnelly and Gabby were sitting side by side, accompanied by Greg Adams, who felt someone had to look out for the best pair of engineers in the Alliance Navy. Of no surprise to anyone, Joker had agreed to join in the fun, but no one wanted Edi to play. "Nothing personal, Edi," James had said. "You're a computer. There's a camera over this table," to which everyone else looked up, "so even if you can't count cards, which I really doubt, you'd be able to see everyone's hands and place your bets accordingly."

Edi had agreed that no one would trust her, so chose to stay as a good luck charm for Jeff, and to make the occasional 'booze run' for everyone. The real surprise to everyone, particularly Joker and James, was the inclusion of Barla Von; the poor little Volus was so short, he had to stand in his chair so he could see everyone at the table.

Von zeroed in on one person in particular. "Kenneth Donnelly… 'sshhk'… I am led to believe it is you I should thank… 'sshhk'… for adapting a spare shuttlecraft to my…'sshhk'… rather unique requirements… 'sshhk'."

Ken looked at the Volus and smiled. "You are more than welcome. I know I would not wish to stay on _your_ world in an environmental suit for any length of time. I am happy your stay with _us_ will be comfortable."

Cortez picked up a deck of cards, looked around at everybody and cut the deck; Vega picked it up, expertly shuffled several times and said, "The game is poker, five-card draw, nothing wild." James dealt the cards, and the game began…

* * *

After a few hands had been played, it had become abundantly clear to the humans around the table that Barla Von was either very lucky (unlikely) or a very skilled player… he had won four of the first five games with ease. Thinking the cards may have been tampered with somehow, Vega opened a new pack of cards, shuffled them and set the deck on the table. Ashley cut the deck, and then passed it to Ken Donnelly. "Deal 'em, Engineer."

As Donnelly looked at Gabby, he shuffled the cards again and dealt each person a hand. Vega looked at Edi, who had been standing behind Joker. "Maybe we should have had her play after all! We certainly couldn't be losing our shirts any worse! Edi, would you mind getting another drink for myself and the Señorita?" Looking around, he asked, "Anyone else?"

Edi took note of the raised hands and left to procure the needed beverages. Before she returned, Shepard and Liara poked their heads in the small compartment. "The game must be going well, Li… no one's been called out for cheating, no gunshots… good clean game."

Raising her voice slightly, she asked, "Gabby? What's that on your finger?"

Gabby swiftly placed her left hand out of sight in her lap, only to have Shepard come stand behind her. "Ms Daniels, if I didn't know better, I would have sworn I saw you wearing a ring of some kind."

Gabby blushed and brought her hand back up, which Shepard gently grabbed to bring up over Gabby's head for a closer look. "Why Gabby, this appears to be an _engagement_ ring. It's beautiful! So," she smirked, "who's the lucky fellow?" Knowing full well Ken Donnelly was the only man Gabby loved, Shepard looked at the young engineer sitting beside her and remarked, "Guess he finally realized what a great partner he already has, huh?" Shepard gave Gabby's hand a gentle squeeze as she placed her other hand on Donnelly's shoulder. "Congratulations to both of you." Looking at the players as Edi returned with a tray full of drinks, she said before leaving, "You should offer a toast to this pair, and wish them good fortune, although…" here she paused to look at the table's surface, where most of the chips were sitting in front of Barla Von, "…it would appear they'll need a loan from each of you to get a start in life."

James grabbed his glass, hoisted it up and said, "Ken and Gabby! Here's to a long life with no strife! Congratulations!" To which everyone agreed with a 'Hear! Hear!'

* * *

Shepard and Liara wandered their way to the other end of the room, where the numerous people sitting at the couches surrounding the bar were having the time of their lives. To see everyone here, together and actually enjoying life after the Reapers was something neither one had taken for granted. Shepard glanced at her mom; Hannah was in heaven. She had her best friend, Karin, sitting right beside her along with two Asari friends she had known for seventeen years; they had been through some tough times together and were practically considered family.

Seeing her daughter arrive, Hannah suddenly raised her glass. "A toast!" Everyone in the group stopped and looked at her except Garrus.

He suddenly sprang to his feet and tripped to the bar, "Wait! My glass is empty! I have nothing with which to... toast!" As an afterthought, he glanced back. "Dee? You good?"

Dee glanced at her half-full tumbler and held it up for Garrus to see. Garrus tilted his head at an angle and his mandibles twitched. "Why... do you have two glasses? Never mind. You certainly don't need a refill."

Samantha started to chuckle as Garrus turned back to Aethyta, "Fill 'er up, please, Matrar... Mati... Aethyta!"

"My pleasure, Vakarian!" Aethyta's growly laughter filled the bar as she poured his glass full to the brim with Turian brandy.

Garrus returned to his seat on the couch slowly, careful to not spill any of the precious liquid. "It's a good thing you don't have to get up for work tomorrow, Garrus." Shepard wore a huge grin on her face. "I can't wait to see you in the morning... I love starting my day with a good laugh!"

Garrus was about to retort when Hanna cleared her throat to regain everyone's attention. They all expected a toast to her daughter, so were surprised as she started speaking. "To the Asari! To Liara, for finding the damn plans we needed in the nick of time, to Arlyna and Niria, for giving Sam the basics she needed to develop into the biotic she has become, and to Aethyta..." her glance coasted to Garrus before she continued, "for making the most _entertaining_ drinks in the house!"

As everyone burst out in laughter, Shepard shouted out, "Wait! Wait! You forgot Riana!" As everyone turned toward her expectantly, she smiled and lifted her glass again. "To Riana! Without whom... _I_ would not be standing here today."

Not everyone knew the full story, but it was still a sobering thought, so the laughter quieted slightly and Liara held up her glass, "For which _I_ will be eternally grateful. To Riana!"

"Hell yeah!" Aethyta, as always, fired the party right back up again with her guttural bellow. "Now, who else needs refills?"

As the chatter and laughter renewed, Traynor leaned over the bar and gave Riana a solid kiss in front of everyone. "And her bravery is one of the reasons I fell arse over tit for her!"

"Turned out, our training of Samantha was a very good investment on our part. We don't need to be thanked for that; we've certainly been repaid in full... with interest!" Arlyna smiled brightly and attempted unsuccessfully to stand. As she fell back to the couch, she half-missed the cushion, bounced and slid to the floor, leaning against Niria's legs.

With a very surprised expression on her face, Niria looked up and tried to spy Aethyta behind the bar. "Goddess! What exactly have you been _putting_ in her glass?" She received no answer... at least not one she could hear above the laughter.

* * *

Garrus Vakarian had a very happy buzz going. Deciding he didn't need to get falling down drunk to enjoy this party, especially in the company of the lovely Desis Vyessan, he stood from the couch and reached down for her hand. "I need a bit of air. Care to go for a stroll?"

"Sounds lovely. You ought to be intimately familiar with this ship, Garrus. It must have been difficult to leave after so much time on board." Desis stopped speaking for a moment as they exited the lounge and moved towards the crew's mess area, amid calls of '_Yo Garrus_' and '_Hey, Vakarian_' from various crew members scattered about the large area. "You seem to have made a lot of Human friends."

Garrus sipped his brandy before answering. "These people are absolutely the best, Dee. It takes a lot of them to run this ship… hell, any ship, Human, Turian, Asari? Most of those on board the Normandy were here at the start of the war. No one… not a single person on board, ever gave me _anything_ but respect, not just because I was the commander's friend… hell, I served as her XO and led the ground teams on occasions when she came back too injured to go right back out; no, they gave me respect because that's the kind of people the commander… the captain, has working for her."

They were in the passageway leading to the main battery. "My private domain was right up here." He entered a code in the door lock; the hatch segments retracted and they strolled into the compartment housing the Thanix cannon. "Here it is. Turian design, on a Human ship that can trace its ancestry to a Turian design. We don't accomplish anything, Dee, by going it alone. I am so glad the First Contact War was resolved without a mass of casualties on both sides." He took another long pull from his glass, eyes focused somewhere off in the distance.

"You miss it, don't you?"

"Hhhmmmm?" What's that?"

Dee raised her hands waist high, palms up. "You miss this... all of this. Garrus, I _know_ you aren't truly happy on the homeworld, and I can't blame you, not after seeing all this…" she spun around, hands still in the air, "…your friends, co-workers, this ship. The people on this ship are your family, Garrus. But your time here is at an end; you have an important part to play in the future of the Turian people now and I want that future to include me. I love you, Garrus!" She flung her arms around him and hugged him, to which he responded in kind.

Reluctantly releasing her, he said, "I love you as well, Desis Vyessan. Come on then, there's more ship to see. I don't think I've been barred from the CIC yet…"

* * *

Flight Lieutenant Jeff Moreau was the first casualty of Barla Von's uncanny card playing ability; the diminutive Volus had amassed a small fortune at the expense of everyone sitting around the table. The game was still going on, with James Vega and Steve Cortez each believing just one more hand would be all that was needed to change their luck.

Joker's card playing abilities had declined hand-in-hand with the amount of alcohol he had imbibed. He picked up the few remaining chips in front of him and rose to his feet, where he stood unsteadily as he looked to Edi. "One more drink and I'm done, Edi."

He slowly made his way to the bar at the other end of the compartment. _Funny…don't remember this compartment being so long! Musta been stretched somehow during the refit. Took out a bulkhead, moved some equipment…_

After less than a minute … _30 minutes - the room is huge! …_ of patiently plodding along, Joker was finally standing in front of Matriarch Aethyta. "Are you the person I need to see about this glass?" the snarky pilot asked.

Aethyta knew all about Flight Lieutenant Moreau and made up her mind she was _not_ going to rip his spine out and beat him to death with it - might upset Liara. "Depends on what you actually need me to do with that glass, smart-ass."

"Well, it would be really nice if… hey! I jus' noticed something. You're blue." Joker said it as if he'd just made the most important observation ever. "Yer s'possta be green on Snt Patty's day, ain'tcha?"

Aethyta had heard everything now. Green? She thought for a moment and hatched a diabolical plan. "Lemme see that glass of yours, shit-for-brains! I have just the thing to fix it for you."

Joker looked at the glass in his hand as if he just realized it was there. "Here ya go."

* * *

Joker leaned heavily on the end of the bar as he finished the last bit of liquid in his glass. Whatever the Asari bartender had put in there had left him feeling as if his legs had disappeared in the clouds. He wanted to look down to see if they were actually still attached, but felt like his stomach would revolt if he did so. He decided to get one 'for the road' so he could crawl into his bed and sleep for eighteen hours. Banging the bottom of the glass on the bar, he hollered, "Barkeep!" except what came out sounded like 'Brkaep'

Aethyta looked at the scrawny Human partially lying on the bar, glanced around to make sure Shepard and Liara weren't in the lounge and pulled her secret weapon… Ryncol. She held the bottle up for Joker to see and said, "This what you want?"

"Hell yeah! Put more of the stuff in the… the thing… more stuff goes in!"

She had her out! Joker had told her to put more in the glass. "Your funeral, pal." Aethyta let out an evil chuckle as she filled the glass with pure Ryncol, added an ice cube and set it on the bar in front of Joker's nose. "Enjoy your crawl home!"

Joker put the glass to his mouth and took a swallow. _Not bad. Bartender's okay, even if she is blue. Didn't like her laugh, though – sounded evil._ Joker's thought gradually faded as his brain shut down, allowing his unconscious form to slowly slide off the bar onto the floor.

Edi noticed this and went to see what was wrong. Aethyta shrugged her shoulders. "Couldn't tell you what happened to him. Musta dozed off."

Edi gathered up Jeff's unconscious form and took him through the crew's mess to the Med bay, where she hoisted him up on a bed and hooked him to a monitor. He'd probably sleep it off okay, but she expected she'd be doing all his work for the next several days. She sent a report to Dr Chakwas' omni tool and left to rejoin the party.

* * *

As the party went on, Shepard and Liara made the rounds; they visited the T'Soni commandos, the majority of which had gathered in the starboard lounge. Shepard was pleased to note that while only six of the eight were there, the room was not going to waste. A number of the more intrepid Normandy enlisted crew were hanging out with them and everyone seemed to be having a great time. As Liara mingled and spoke with each of the commandos, Shepard walked over to Captain Tanni and smiled, "It really is good to see you again, Livos... it's been too damn long. Seems folks are having fun."

Livos smiled in return. "That we are, Shepard." She glanced around the room. "I was concerned at first, when the first couple of young soldiers walked in, fearing the typical stereotype of Asari was going to cause difficulties, but they have proven to be rather polite and well mannered... especially given they are very well on their way to being drunk."

"They've been on the Normandy long enough with Liara and Riana to understand that those stereotypes are not valid." Shepard laughed lightly, "Be sure to ask Riana about the first couple weeks after our stop with the fleet to pick up some support personnel at the start of the war." Shepard shook her head. "She ended up pinning more than one to a bulkhead when they were somewhat... _reluctant_... to take 'no' for an answer."

"Yes. Riana has matured very nicely as a First." A shadow fell over Livos' face. "If nothing else, the _real_ Matriarch Benezia loved her extended family and had an eye for talent. She could not have picked a better pair for Liara than Riana and Judea."

Her eyes came up and met those of the Spectre squarely. "And she most certainly would have approved of you. Her biggest dream was that Liara would find herself matched with an equal; someone of firm spirit, an intellect to challenge her, and possessing a zest for life that would draw Liara out of her books and into the world and life beyond the walls of a library."

"She was easy to fall in love with." Shepard's eyes drifted to Liara and watched her laugh and chat, perfectly at ease with the group. "And somehow, I knew; the first moment our eyes met, I knew. She is truly the _Grá mo Chroí_... the love of my heart." She looked back to Livos. "And suddenly, I have a great desire to be back at her side."

"Of that I have no doubt. Your entire demeanor changes when you speak of her; your love for her is evident even to the dullest of wit." Livos let out a short laugh and then looked at the commander in query. "Shepard. After this grand tour, do you plan to stay with the Alliance and remain a Spectre?"

"I believe so, but Liara and I haven't really talked about it yet. Being promoted to Captain means they'll probably want to move me off the Normandy and give her to Ashley, and I don't know what the Council will expect of me, or if I'll be able to take Liara with me." Again, Shepard looked at her bondmate. "She'd most likely have to give up being the Broker and I won't ask that of her."

Her voice picked up an edge as she continued, "And the Council and the Alliance have to give me time off when this is done or I _will_ resign. I am _going_ to spend time on Thessia with Liara and we're going to figure out where our future is headed, be that with the Alliance, the Council... or not."

Livos eyes went wide. "Really? You would resign because they do not give you time off?"

Shepard looked at her and she had a glint to her eyes which Livos was glad was not directed at her. "Unequivocally, yes. Honestly, they made us take that _week_ at the Citadel as the war was all coming to a head, the _worst_ possible time for me to take leave and honestly believe I could truthfully relax." Shepard shook her head in disgust. "I haven't had a bona fide leave period of more than a couple of days since our two weeks after Sovereign, when we visited my mother and Thessia."

"_Nara_! Goddess! That was..." Livos paused to think and stared at her in astonishment. "...five years ago!"

"Well, three to me, if you don't count the two I was being rebuilt." Shepard shook her head, "But, yeah. Now you get my point." Shepard sighed, "The Alliance hasn't exactly been kind to me, or Liara by extension, and I'm not yet eligible for retirement. I've only served sixteen years, fourteen if you subtract the two, which I'm sure they'll do... and they would probably deduct my time with Cerberus as well."

Shepard gave a derisive snort. "Hell, they may not let me separate at all. "Citing 'needs of the Alliance' or some other bullshit. All I know is I have over sixty days of accrued leave time and I am _going_ to take it."

She suddenly felt comforting arms slip around her waist from behind and Liara kissed her gently on the neck before placing her chin on Shepard's shoulder and whispering into her ear. "Are you alright, _Siame_? I sensed... much angst through the link. We are supposed to be enjoying ourselves."

Shepard closed her eyes and relaxed into Liara's loving embrace, absorbing the tranquility from her soothing touch. "Sorry, Blue. You're right. I let myself get a bit riled up."

Livos frowned. "Apologies. I pursued a line of inquiry that was not suitable for the festive occasion."

Shepard reached out and immediately clasped her shoulder in friendship. "Absolutely not. It was a harmless question. It was I who let my disgust with our current situation taint the answer... and for that, I am sorry."

Shepard let out a self deprecating laugh, "So, Livos. To answer your question. Yes, I think so, for the short term at least." She reached back and drew Liara up beside her. "After that? Who knows? But you will see us on Thessia for an extended vacation, one way or another."

Liara's eyes got bright, "Really?"

"Yes, _Grá mo Chroí._" Shepard turned and kissed her sweetly. "I have over sixty days of accrued vacation time and I plan to use it so that we may formalize our bond." Shepard grinned and touched their foreheads softly together, "Assuming you still want to do that."

"By the _Goddess_, Shepard! Really? You want to go through a _formal_ bonding ceremony?" Her whole body suddenly tensed with a nervous energy and Liara leaned back so she could see and read Samantha's face when she gave her answer.

"Hey. I didn't go through that whole, formal, Asari promise ritual doohickey for nothing, ya know!" Shepard reveled in the absolute _glee_ that danced through Liara's sparkling blue eyes.

"This woman plans ahead to make sure she takes the right steps to end up where she wants to be." Shepard was sure alcohol played a part in what happened next, because the Asari _she_ knew would _never_ have literally _shrieked_ with delight, at an eardrum shattering pitch, and thrown herself into the captain's arms with such force that she was very glad a hysterically laughing Livos was behind her to keep them from both tumbling to the floor in a heap.

The shriek brought a number of people running and they all crowded into the room, wondering what had happened. After she helped Shepard stabilize her footing, Livos stepped back out of the way. Recognizing Liara's voice, however high and distorted it was, Riana frantically shoved her way through the mob to the front, readying her biotics. She saw a crying Liara, clutching desperately to Shepard and an angry scowl crossed her face, "Mistress! What happened?"

A growl came from the doorway, and Shepard didn't even need to see the face to know it was Aethyta. "I heard my girl screech... What the fuck happened?" Her fiery voice was promptly followed by her body also emerging from the crowd to stare at the couple in the center of a quickly widening circle.

"Dad!" Tears streaming down her face and trembling with excitement, Liara quickly turned and grabbed Shepard's hand on the arm that held the promise bracelet, lifting both of their arms out for display. "Samantha wants to _formalize_ our bond!"

Riana's entire body relaxed and a wide smile replaced the glowing blue of biotics as the energy faded away to nothing. Aethyta stared at her like she had gone completely insane. "Well, I'll be a Pyjak's uncle. You sure about that Shepard? You even know what it entails?"

"No, Ma'am, I don't." Shepard pulled their arms back and she looped hers around Liara's waist and pulled her close. "And I don't care. Doesn't matter how hard it is; anything that makes Liara this happy is definitely worth doing."

"Oh, my." A third voice chipped in from the crowd as Hannah worked her way forward, tears running down her face as well. "My baby girl is gonna get married!"

At Hannah calling the Hero of Elysium, the Savior of the Citadel, the woman who led the victory against the Reapers... her 'baby girl,' the entire room erupted into joyous laughter, immediately followed by countless well wishes from everyone in the room. After a long while, all the additional people who had entered the room had said their piece and trickled back out again, leaving the happy couple and all their close friends. Liara sighed and leaned into Shepard, tucking her head down onto Shepard's shoulder and looking for strength. "Suddenly, I'm very tired, Sam."

Shepard laughed quietly, "I imagine so, after that display." Liara didn't really have much energy to put into any sort of remonstrance, so all she mustered was a soft poke in Shepard's side. Shepard gave her a tight hug and kissed her gently on the forehead. "_Gráim thú_, Liara." Knowing that was new to her, Shepard sent the meaning through their link. _{I love you.}_

"Come on." Shepard gave Liara a gentle nudge upright and took her hand as her glance shifted to her mother. "Mom, we're going to head to bed, but you know there's one last thing we have to do."

Hannah smiled and her eyes flashed with happy remembrance. "I've heard you speaking Gaelic tonight, you remember the words?"

Shepard smiled, "Yeah, but the only other one in the room to understand us would probably be Ken Donnelly, so I think we need to do the Anglicized version."

Hannah took Samantha's free hand and walked with them out to the Mess. Shepard patched into the ship-wide comms for a moment and shut down the music to many groans of protest. "Would everyone still awake please report to the Mess?"

Everyone on the Normandy amounted to roughly fifty souls, so there was plenty of room as they all filtered in. After Shepard left sufficient time for those who were still awake to gather, she gave Liara a quick kiss and dropped her hand. She then stepped forward with her mother. "A lot of you know this song from the Human New Year's celebrations, but not many realize it's also sung in the Isles at the close of the final _céilí_... uhm, dance... of the St Patrick's Day festival. While _you all_ may not be done with your celebrations yet, and that's fine by me, I am. But before we take our leave, I am compelled by tradition," Shepard paused and looked pointedly at her mother, "to sing _Auld Lang Syne_. It's an older version, but feel free to sing it with whatever words you know it by... the music isn't any different."

Shepard cued her omnitool and as the tune started to play, Liara instantly realized where Shepard's singing voice came from; Hannah was a low soprano, which was a perfect harmony to Shepard's rich alto. It immediately became obvious to the entire group it was not the first time these two had sung this song together. Liara stepped up and slipped her arms around her lover's waist and looked up into her face with adoration. As broken as his Scottish brogue was, Ken Donnelly quickly joined in and he did so in his native tongue. Eventually, everyone who knew the words participated to some extent and as the last notes faded away, Shepard gave her mom a kiss on the cheek as a tear trickled down her own. Her voice was husky as she whispered, "Thanks, Mom. There were times I wasn't sure we'd ever get to sing together again."

Hannah returned her kiss with a tight hug. "You never should have doubted it Sam. We're tough. We're Shepards."

When they separated, Samantha cleared her voice and made one last announcement. "Alright! The music's about to come back on and I want everybody to have a good time. Don't worry about us... the loft is soundproofed!" As the music restarted, Shepard made a quick call to Edi. "If you would, please, Edi. When the last of the revelers pass out or crawl off to sleep, can you turn off the music and go to night lighting?"

"Certainly, Shepard. Enjoy your rest. And if I may say so, Captain, I believe your party was a brilliant success."

Shepard wrapped her arm around Liara and they began their walk to the elevator, saying their final goodbyes as they walked. They stepped in, arm-in-arm, and as the elevator doors shut, Saint Patrick's Day, 2188, came to a quiet close.

* * *

_A/N: This was my first ever co-author attempt and a result of a challenge tossed to _Desert Sunrise_ late-night on the 13th. It has been an intense weekend and Monday of many dozens of emails back and forth and late night Beta reading by both of us. _DS_ wasn't sure about working with another author, but working back and forth has been a real blast, and trying it for the first time on a 'short' really helped... Hope you have enjoyed the fruits of our joint effort! _


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